Opening: 6pm 6 July
Running 7-30 July
At The Library Project
Buff (noun/verb) ;
- the erasure of graffiti by painting over or chemically removing it
Buff is a project in which a series of public artworks are photographed.
These artworks are graffiti removals, mostly painted, colloquially known as ‘buffs’. The compositions are researched by fine-art painter Stephen Burke and documented through analogue photography by Dublin based photographer, Fiachra Corcoran. The work is being brought together in a beautifully designed hardback photobook. We will be celebrating our book launch in The Library Project in Dublin, with an exhibition running from the 1-6 August.
The book investigates the culture of buffing within Dublin City. It is an exploration of the colours, compositions and concepts offered up by a mostly undocumented artform. It is more than a collaboration between artist and photographer, it’s a collaboration with an entire city, it’s people and it’s streets.
Buffing is, in many ways, the ultimate gray area. It blurs the boundaries around what we consider to be art, and challenges the stigma associated with “fine” art and gallery norms. It draws a fine line between high and low art, between painting and vandalism. It raises questions around ideas like outsider art, labour art, subconscious art and censorship.Through careful framing and presentation, we begin to establish the works within a category of their own. The book is an attempt to give the movement the due space, contemplation and recognition it deserves.
